Handy reminder: although things look like they’ll get pretty bad for LGBTs under President Trump (ugh we can barely bring ourselves to type that), they are still not as bad as some other countries. For now.
This weekend, a religious cabal complained to police that some gay men were having sex in an apartment, and the police stormed in and arrested thirteen people.
It may be tempting to point out that the raid was sparked by a complaint from a group called “Islamic Defenders Front” as proof that Islam is a threat to LGBT people. There’s been a surge in anti-Muslim xenophobia around the US election, after all.
But hold on a moment: don’t forget that until a few years ago, gay men could be arrested for doing exactly the same thing in the United States, and the criminalization of homosexuality was staunchly defended by Christian groups. And what’s more, Mike Pence was among those who said that America shouldn’t pressure countries to stop arresting and executing gays. Plus, one of Trump’s possible picks for the Supreme Court said recently that states should still be allowed to arrest queer people.
How about we take this to the next level?
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So, that’s one more handy reminder for you: despite an Islamic group targeting LGBT people in this one case, queers are under attack from Christians, too.
In any event, the Indonesian raid has cause quite a stir, in part because it seems to have been illegal. There’s no law against gay sex in private in Indonesia (as there was until recently in the US, thanks to you know who). This has led to renewed condemnation of Indonesia’s police force, which sometimes works closely with vigilante groups. How much do you want to be that there are people in Trump’s circle who are looking at that and thinking, “hey, maybe we oughta do the same thing”?
Brian
Trump will protect us by stopping the Islamists from entering the country.
montserrat
@Brian: The reach of your willful ignorance and blatant stupidity is astounding, yet typical for a trump supporter.
Xzamilloh
Yeah, let’s always go to the past to explain away the behavior of present groups. Define a few years ago. You mean those archaic laws on the book that Lawrence v. Texas shot down and that no judge worth their weight would ever enforce? Hell, there are adultery laws still on the books that are invalid. What the fuck is your point, Benji Douglas? As usual, the regressive leftist mindset comes in and it’s “Defend Islam by bringing up something Christians did.” And meanwhile, let’s ignore Clinton’s own flip flopping on LGBT issues and her known donors from Islamic countries with archaic laws concerning LGBT people.
I don’t see anyone ever bringing up Islam when talking about Christian batshit nutjobs, unless some fundie evangelical is doing so in the comment sections of an article/video
nateatwork
Please tell me, “Benji,” that you are joking. You live in a country with an overwhelming Christian majority that has embraced gay marriage and hasn’t prosecuted homosexual activity for greater than 3 decades. Why? Maybe not because Christians overwhelming embrace homosexuality, but they tolerate pluralism, and the rights of minorities. Name me any Muslim majority country with equal protections for gays? Please do, I am really curious. We have to end this ridiculous false equivalency between christianity and islam. They are different religions with different values.
nateatwork
Also, I’ll point out, I find it insane that your tags for this article include “christians” and “Donald Trump” while they clearly have nothing to do with the “news” reported here. Shame. Of all the republican candidates for the nomination, Trump was the most pro-gay. To somehow turn this report of a human rights violation in a muslim country into an attack on Donald Trump… is really unimaginable.
viveutvivas
@nateatwork: “You live in a country with an overwhelming Christian majority that has embraced gay marriage and hasn’t prosecuted homosexual activity for greater than 3 decades.”
No prosecution of homosexual activity in 3 decades, really? What imaginary planet do you live on?
Paco
@nateatwork: You are either…
1. Not from this planet.
Or
2. Another know nothing twenty-something that has absolutely no clue what life was like for gay people, at the hands of right-wing christians in government positions, in this country during the 20th century.
The Tower of Power
@Brian: No he won’t.
Trump is already a recruiting tool for jihadists because his positions are seen as hostile to the religion, so they make Muslims who feel like they are being persecuted turn toward groups like ISIS as an outlet for their frustrations.
Hillary Clinton is thinking about how to get the King of Saudi Arabia to help crush ISIS, and she knows if she acts in a way that attacks Islam he will be less likely.
OzJosh
This garbled report is so typical of America’s self-centred attitude to the rest of the world. There’s not even a passing interest in what might actually be happening in Indonesia; it’s merely an excuse to reflect on the current state of the US and how you’re all feeling about it. Never mind that it also completely mis-represents the true state of gay culture and Islam in Indonesia – which, in case anyone is interested, is the most moderate of all Muslim countries, with a surprisingly vibrant and open gay sub-culture.
Hussain-TheCanadian
The good news is that all of those arrested were released today with no charges – Its good to know that the “Islamic defense front” is a nasty Salafi outfit, brought to you by the great ally of the American government, Saudi Arabia.